Time to Run
by HebrewPrincess91
Summary: Time travel AU. Anakin crash lands on Hoth and finds himself on the run with Han, Luke and Leia. As he discovers the consequences of his future actions he realizes that Vader must be stopped at all costs. Set during Episode V. Gift for The Lady 0f Shalott.
1. EVERYTHING GOES TO HOTH

Anakin fought to control his ship. Lights were blinking, alarms were blaring. The ship was going down. Struggling with the controls, Anakin wrenched _Twilight_ to the left, hoping to avoid a fatal collision with the rapidly approaching planet. Wrenching it to the right, he attempted to ease the descent of the spacecraft as the gravity grew stronger. The ship continued to accelerate towards the planet surface, flames began to envelop the ship as he entered the atmosphere hot. Fighting to keep calm he tried to fight the ship and draw on the Force at the same time.

Careening wildly, he wrangled the ship towards a plateau. It wouldn't do to try and land among the many mountain ranges on the planet. The last of his warning sensors gave out and there was a final squall of protest as his ship lost the last of the altitude he had. He plowed his ship into the snow-covered surface of the planet. Shaken from his seat Anakin clambered to his feet. Smoke billowed from _Twilight_ , and Anakin didn't want to stick around to see what was burning. He left the ship at a run, muttering under his breath, "Don't blow up, don't blow up, don't blow up."

The explosion knocked him off his feet sending him sprawling in the snow. Glancing over his shoulder he saw the burning remains of _Twilight_. "That's not good." Rising, he dusted himself off. The air was windy, and snow was beginning to swirl around his head, playing with his hair. He had no snow gear, and anything he might have had was now part of _Twilight_ 's pyre. "Definitely not good." Gazing around the landscape, he saw nothing but snow in any direction. There was a storm moving in, and it seemed that night was falling. Anakin decided the best course of action would be to find shelter.

Closing his eyes, Anakin reached out with the Force. He let it flow through him and out into the planet, searching. His eyes snapped open, there was someone nearby. Someone that seemed to be in trouble. Hunching his shoulders to keep out the wind as much as was possible, Anakin made for the other.

The wind was cruel, and the snow quickly covered Anakin's eyelashes with a frosty crust. Anakin had to move slower than he would have liked, knowing that with every moment he was out in the elements his life expectancy dropped. It occurred to him that it would be a cruel twist of fate if the boy from a hot desert planet were to die on an icy one.

"Ben."

Anakin heard the cry from not too far off.

"Ben."

It seemed to be something between a plea and a moan. Anakin ran the last few meters between himself and the other he had sensed earlier. Dropping to his knees beside the prone form he found a half frozen human man of roughly his same age. The man was dressed for the weather, but seemed to have been exposed for longer than his gear could account for. Anakin himself could feel the ill effects of being in the frigid cold for too long. Checking the vitals of the unconscious man he grimaced. Hypothermia had set in, and he was covered with injuries. The wound on his head didn't look too good either.

Starting to shiver violently, Anakin tried to focus on the Force. He had to get the two of them out of here. It was getting darker by the second. Over the sound of the wind, Anakin heard a cry of some kind, an animal cry. Just what I need, he thought, a wild animal that wants a quick snack before bed. Surging to his feet, shivering uncontrollably, Anakin readied himself. He fumbled for his lightsaber, holding it un-ignited in his hand.

Appearing through the blizzard Anakin saw a man riding a furry, horned, lizard-like animal. The animal cried again as the man dismounted. "Luke." The man stumbled toward Anakin. "Luke," he called again.

Looking back over his shoulder to the unconscious man, Anakin motioned to the newcomer. "He's hurt, he needs help."

"You don't look so good yourself." The man called back.

"I can manage, but we need shelter." The wind was roaring now, Anakin had to yell to make himself heard.

The animal gave a bleating groan and collapsed. Shuddering once it died. "Great. Just great." The rider moved to the animal and started unstrapping the saddle. "I have a temporary shelter here, use this blanket and the two of you keep warm while I get us a place to stay for the night."

Taking the emergency blanket Anakin was half blown over as he knelt next to the unconscious man. Reaching under his arms, Anakin pulled the unconscious man onto his lap, he wrapped the both of them in the blanket. Holding the other man close, Anakin sealed out the elements. Sharing body heat the two of them slowly began to warm up.

A short while later, just as Anakin's shivering was beginning to ease, the corner of the blanket was lifted. "Shelter's ready if you're interested in not becoming a giant icicle." Between the two of them they managed to get the three of them into the small emergency shelter. Mercifully, the shelter was heated.

The other man began opening the unresponsive man's clothing and inserting small warmers at his major pulse points. "You can call me Han Solo. Sleeping beauty here is Luke. What's your name, kid?"

"My name is Anakin."


	2. MANY HAPPY RETURNS

The next morning, Anakin was introduced to many more people. The three of them were recovered by a team from the base and taken back for medical treatment. Luke went straight into the bacta tank, while Anakin and Han were more or less unscathed. Finding that his mechanical hand was a little stiff, Anakin tinkered with it while Luke underwent his treatment.

Leia came into the room to see how Luke was doing, surviving a night on Hoth was a hard feat to accomplish. She stopped when she spotted Anakin. Han had told her about the stranger he'd found wandering in the snow, he hadn't mentioned that he was so young, or so handsome. After ensuring that Luke was doing well with his treatment, and that he was going to be okay, she stepped towards Anakin. "Hello, I'm Leia, and I wanted to tell you how grateful we are that you were there to help Luke. I don't know what we would do without him."

Anakin nodded pleasantly. "I'm glad I could be of assistance. It was actually an accident I found him though. I crash landed on the planet and I managed to somehow run into him. It's Solo who did the most work, he saved both our skins."

Leia took a seat next to him. "We thank you nonetheless."

Anakin found what he was looking for in his tinkering and regained full flexibility of his digits. Closing up the access panel he pulled his sleeve back down and his glove back on. Turning his full attention to Leia, he said, "I really am grateful for your hospitality, but I need to get back to my mission. Is it possible that there's a long range comm here? I need to get in touch with the Temple and see if someone can pick me up."

"Temple?" Leia looked over his clothing, he was clad in simple brown and black in basic fabrics. "Are you part of a religious order?"

Anakin gave a little smile. "Not quite, I'm a-"

"How's the kid doing, Princess?" Han strolled into the room. Nodding to Anakin he said, "I see you've met our new guest." There was a small twinge of jealousy in his voice as he said it.

Leia gave Han a piercing look. "Yes, I have. And he's a lovely gentleman too. You're lucky he was there when you found Luke, or you could have been in a lot of trouble."

Anakin and Han exchanged surprised glances. Han looked dumbfounded. Anakin could tell that this was part of a longer fight the two of them were having. He tried to suppress a grin.

"Listen here, sweetheart, I saved Luke, and this guy. By myself. He was well on the way to being a popsicle when I showed up. He didn't help me, I helped him."

Leia cocked her head to the side, fixing him with one of her superior gazes. "I'm sure that's the way you're going to tell it, aren't you. You always have to take the credit."

"Princess, I ain't exaggerating. I swooped in at the last second and saved the day. This one's on me. I get the credit. Fair and square." Han was exasperated. Anakin could tell that he was almost out of his league when it came to Leia. The romantic tension that crackled between them just under the surface was undeniable.

The medical aids that were overseeing the bacta therapy decided Luke had had enough and helped him out of the tank. Moments later Luke was helped into the room; clean, dry and dressed after his bacta therapy. The medical aid guided him to a couch, giving him specific instructions to lay still and take it easy. After the aid left, Leia and Han moved to see if Luke was alright. Luke was more than a little embarrassed that he had gotten himself into so much trouble. "I'm okay," he said, fending off questions before they could be asked.

"You'd better be," Han replied. He waved a hand toward Leia. "Someone's gotta look after things here when I'm gone."

Leia momentarily eased her expression of concern for Luke to shoot Han a dirty look. Luke nodded towards Anakin. "Who's that?"

Anakin rose and bowed. "General Skywalker, at your service. We ran into each other out in the snow, but I'm not sure you'd remember me."

"Skywalker?" said Han. He glanced at Luke. "A relative of yours?"

Luke shook his head. "I'm sure I'm not the only Skywalker in the galaxy."

Anakin looked intrigued. "You're a Skywalker too, I can't say I've met another one." After a moment of thought on the matter, he dismissed it, getting back to business. Turning to Leia, he said, "About the off world comm, is there one I can access?"

"I'm afraid that off-world communications are off limits for now. We can't afford for the enemy to discover our position right as we're trying to leave. Once we get off planet we can arrange something then."

"I see." Nobody had told him anything specific, but Anakin had picked up that the people at this base seemed to be fighters in some kind of civil war. He had never heard of the Empire they mentioned, let alone this out of the way ice-world they were on. With the Clone Wars going on, though, there were so many smaller conflicts that slipped under the radar. The Jedi couldn't be there for all of them.

He stroked his chin, a habit he picked up from Obi-Wan. Sometimes he tried to imagine what Obi-Wan would do in a particular situation. Anakin really didn't have the time to waste hanging out with a bunch of rebels. On the flip-side, this was not a planet with a lot of options. Since _Twilight_ was destroyed he would have to stick with these charming revolutionaries until other arrangements could be made. It seemed to him that Obi-Wan would take such a route. Personally, Anakin was more inclined to find the comm and use it in secret. However, in this instance, he thought a little patience might be the safer avenue overall.

"You have a lightsaber?" Luke sat up, surprised to see Anakin wearing one that looked almost identical to his own. Han and Leia looked too.

Anakin glanced down at his belt. He remembered asking Qui-Gon a similar question over ten years ago. "I am a Jedi knight. This is the weapon of a Jedi warrior. A little old-fashioned, maybe, but it gets the job done."

"You're a Jedi?" Luke and Leia said at the same time. Surprise stamped on both of their faces.

Leia thought that her last hope of Jedi aid for the Rebellion had died with Obi-Wan. Without his training Luke could never fully realize his abilities and help them in the ways they most needed. Luke did the best he could, but he could only do so much with what he knew. There was still so much for him to learn and they both knew it.

Luke remembered the vision he had in the snow. Ben had appeared to him. Told him to find a Jedi master so he could complete his training. Could this be the man he was meant to find? Was it possible that he had literally been thrown in the path of, and been stumbled upon, by a fully trained Jedi knight? It seemed too good to be true.

Han sighed. "Great, another-" His words were drowned out as alarms suddenly started wailing throughout the base. The klaxon sent people scurrying and Leia sprang to her feet racing out of the room without another word.


	3. RUN OUT OF TOWN

The alarms clanged and blared setting everyone's nerves on edge. A few minutes later Leia's voice came over the comm announcing that an evacuation was underway. An Imperial Star Destroyer had come out of hyperspace nearby, meaning a full-scale Imperial invasion was imminent. More warnings started to blare and lights flashed red through the corridors.

"Chewie better have that ship together," Han muttered under his breath as he raced from the room.

Luke rolled to his feet, no time to sit and recover. "You had best get on one of the transports," he said to Anakin. "I'll show you there on my way to the pilot briefing." Pulling off his medical garb, he began to dress himself in his orange flight suit.

"If you need pilots I can fly. I can fly anything." Anakin hoped he wouldn't be sticking his foot in it by offering to help people he didn't know anything about, for a cause he didn't know anything about. The Force seemed to have guided him here, though, and it seemed like the right thing to do.

Luke gave him a look for a moment, then nodded. "I'm sure was can use an extra."

The two of them were knocked off their feet as the base was shaken to its core. The base shook a second time, snow from the ceiling raining down on them.

"You okay?" Anakin called out.

"The Empire got here sooner than we thought," said Luke. "We need to get to the ships."

They sprang to their feet, and Luke led the way as they ran down the hall. The floor shook again, sending the two of them crashing into the wall of the corridor. As the snow settled they got their feet under them once more. Shuffling quickly as possible down the hall towards was a golden protocol droid, with a white and blue astromech gliding along behind. The golden droid hailed them. "Master Luke. Master Luke. You must hurry at once, there's not a moment to spare."

Running up to the droids, Luke ducked as a shower of snow dumped on the four of them."What is it, Threepio? We need to get going."

"But Master Luke, that's exactly the problem. You cannot leave in your X-Wing. The entire fighter squadron was rendered useless in the first blast. You and all the other pilots will have to evacuate on the ships. Princess Leia told me to inform you of this should I see you before she does."

Luke grimaced. "Looks like we have a change of plans then." Turning, he motioned for Anakin to follow. "Come on, the transport hangars are this way."

The two men ran down the hallway. It was increasingly congested with people fleeing the looming Imperial threat. They paused to let a bevvy of intelligence personnel race by with what appeared to be all the sensitive information the base possessed. More people passed by, pressing towards the hangars, hoping to get out before the Empire got in.

Leia caught up with them, Han with her. "What are you still doing here?" Her tone exasperated and accusatory. "You were supposed to be gone already."

"I was trying to leave, we haven't made it to the hangars yet." Luke dodged around another person who bullied past, blindly unaware of anything but the pressing need to get away. The droids finally catching up to them again.

"We must hurry. The ground assault must be almost here by now. My circuits will be stomped upon by those heartless heathens." C-3PO was in a tizzy. The astromech beeped in response.

Another blast rocked the base. Large chunks of the ceiling fell in on them as yet another blast hit nearby. More snow collapsed completely blocking the hallway. Threepio could be heard squawking in protest at the snow that had jammed itself in his joints.

Anakin sprang to his feet. "We can still get through, I just need a moment to-"

"We ain't got a moment, kid. We need to get to the _Falcon_ and get out of here!" The others dragged themselves upright. Han grabbed Leia's hand and the two of them pelted back down the hallway. Luke wasn't far behind with Anakin following. Threepio shuffled along as quickly as he could, trailing them by quite a few feet, Artoo bringing up the rear.

Swinging into the hangar the party heard the sound of enemy blasterfire at the far door. Anakin was a little dismayed at the ancient and haphazard looking ship that was the hangar's only occupant. The blasterfire sounded again, and the doors sealing the other end of the hangar were forced open in a shower of sparks and squealing metal.

As the smoke cleared, Anakin stood, riveted, as the figure came into view. He looked like a long forgotten nightmare. His black armor stood in naked contrast to the snow that surrounded them. His cloak ominously trailing over the fallen as he entered the hangar. Anakin barely noticed the white-clad figures that flanked the newcomer on either side.

Anakin could feel the raw power of the Force flowing from this dark spectre. He had never felt the Force so powerfully in anyone before, every fibre of his being tingled because of the sheer might emanating from the person before him. Anakin could also feel a bitter edge on the radiant power, the taint of the Dark Side. Undoubtedly, this man was it's slave.

Anakin snatched his lightsaber from his belt and ignited it. The dark clad figure stopped still. For a long moment Anakin knew he was being closely observed by the other. Stepping sideways, Anakin began to position himself between the Sith and the ship. "Get to the ship!" He called over his shoulder. He didn't have to look to know the others were frozen in place, watching.

Leia shook her head, this was going to end the same way as Obi-Wan had. "You can't face him, he's too powerful." She was half pleading. The Rebellion needed him alive if he was going to help them at all.

"Don't argue, just go!" He heard the people and droids run across the hanger and clatter up the ramp. Anakin stepped forward, closing the distance between himself and the Sith warrior. "Time to face me, Sith. You must be the missing one we've been hunting all this time. Your days of evil are done."

The Sith ignited his own lightsaber. The red blade casting a grim light on the surroundings. The Sith raised his blade, pointing it at Anakin. "Who are you?" The filtered voice sent chills down Anakin's spine. The voice itself was unnervingly familiar.

Reaching for the Force, Anakin stretched out his hand and pushed the Sith. The Sith took a step back and Anakin didn't hesitate with his follow up. Jumping forward he swung his lightsaber with everything he could muster. His blow was parried away, and combat was locked.

Perfectly matched in height and build, they went blow for blow, neither one taking or giving any quarter. Anakin heard the sound of engines roaring to life. He hoped he could make it out of here alive. The Sith bore down on him, striking him with the cold fury that marked the Dark Side. Anakin was forced back, this being was certainly the most powerful he had ever fought.

The air in the hanger was disturbed by the engines of the ship. It was thick with snow, making it hard to see. Anakin let the Force flow through him, he let it guide him as he struggled against this dark knight. The Sith raised his hand and silence fell. Anakin felt his throat close off. A wave of panic rushed through him as he instinctively put a hand to his throat, even knowing the gesture was futile.

Struggling to remain calm, Anakin reached out seized the Force and pried himself out of the clutches of the Sith. The _Falcon_ 's engines whined as the ship began to lift from the ground. Particles of snow were blasted in all directions. Desperate to get away, Anakin reached out with the Force with all his might and pulled the ceiling of the hangar in. Backflipping clear of the epicenter, he took a running jump and landed on the still extended ramp. Tumbling into the hallway he lay there on the floor, breathing hard.


	4. WATCH THIS

Luke saw Anakin fall to the ground, panting. Running to his side, he dropped to his knees fearing that Anakin might be hurt. Before Luke could start, Anakin raised a hand. "I'm fine, no need to worry." Rocking a little, the ship cleared the hangar and pelted out of the atmosphere.

Echoing down the hall they heard a voice say, "Watch this."

A second later, Leia's voice came back, "Watch what?"

The _Falcon_ was rocked as it was hit by a laser blast from an enemy ship. Luke helped Anakin to his feet, then the two of them crashed into the wall as the ship was hit again. Righting themselves, they clattered down the hall and into the cockpit. Stumbling into the small room, Anakin gripped the back of Leia's seat to support himself. The fight with the Sith had drained him in a way he hadn't experienced before.

Raising his eyes to look out the viewport, Anakin felt his blood freeze. Through the viewport the open space was littered with Republic Cruisers. They appeared to be modified, but they were unmistakable. No other fleet in the galaxy had ships like that.

Placing a firm hand on Leia's shoulder, he said in a voice as cold as the ice-world below, "You're enemies of the Republic?"

Everyone turned to look at him. It was such an absurd statement. Leia could see the confusion in his face. "What are you talking about? What Republic?" Pointing at the enemy fleet, she said, "That, out there, is the Empire. And they would love nothing better than to see our ashes spread across the galaxy."

As if to punctuate her point another blast slammed into the ship. Everybody reeled from the impact. "Chewie!" Han bellowed, "get us to lightspeed!" Chewbacca roared in response. "Well get it working," Han snapped. Chewie scurried out of the cockpit complaining all the way.

Anakin grabbed the back of Leia's seat as he regained his balance, again. "What needs fixing?"

Han twisted the _Falcon_ into a roll to avoid any more direct hits. "By now, everything," Han gritted out, "if you know anything, go help Chewie." Han took the _Falcon_ for another spin, this time in the opposite direction. "Kid!" he yelled over his shoulder to Luke, "get to the guns!"

Anakin and Luke lurched out into the corridor as they ran to their separate stations. Within seconds Anakin could hear the sound of the ships lasers pounding away against this empire he had never heard of before today.

Anakin dropped to his knees in front of the access panels Chewie had open. Listening to Chewie's diagnosis, Anakin took in the array in front of him. Things didn't look good. The array was chaos, wires spilled everywhere, things were melted that most certainly should not be melted. Catching Chewie's eye, Anakin said, "I've got this, but I'll need you to get over to the auxiliary power and disable it when I say go. This is gonna get real very quick."

Chewie nodded in understanding and scrambled off to the auxiliary power unit. Anakin ran his fingers over the mess in front of him, then began pulling out wires. After all his close calls in the Clone Wars, he was used to this, but it was nerve-wracking all the same. Han's voice rang through the ship, "What are you doing back there? Get us to lightspeed or you can say goodbye for good!"

Anakin wiped his brow on his sleeve. "Working on it!" He jammed fuses into slots and rapidly wired in his new configuration. "Kill the aux!" he bellowed to Chewbacca. Chewie gave a soft roar and the auxiliary power died leaving the ship totally dark.

"What just happened?" said Luke.

"What's going on?" said Leia.

"What the hell are you doing back there?" said Han.

Anakin held his breath. He could hear his heartbeat thudding loudly in his ears. Sweat beaded under his collar. Then with a jolt the hyperdrive roared to life. Everyone was thrown off their balance for the last time as the stars disappeared and they were safely away.


	5. OLD BEGINNINGS

Leia and Han converged on Anakin's position. The ship was pitch dark inside with the only light emanating from the readouts and displays. "Is everyone okay?" Anakin asked. After the pounding they had taken he was surprised that everyone was still standing.

"Yeah, we're fine, but what did you do to the _Falcon_." Han didn't sound pleased.

"It's just a temporary bypass until we have time to look at it. The aux power has to stay off for the remainder of the trip."

"Speaking of trip," Leia turned to Han, "where are we going?"

Luke came into the room wielding a flashlight. "Is everyone okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, kid, we already got that one covered." Han folded his arms across his chest. "As for where we're going," he looked at Leia, "I was going to meet an old friend of mine before heading on to Jabba, so we're on course for Cloud City."

"I've never heard of it," said Luke.

Han grimaced. "After you visit, you won't be able to forget it."

Luke turned his flashlight to Anakin. "How did you escape from Vader back there?"

Anakin winced a little as the light caught him in the eyes. "I relied on the Force. There's no other way to defeat a Sith."

Luke moved the beam to the floor. "Even with what I know of the Force, I could never have escaped Vader so easily. You destroyed the hangar with hardly any effort.

Anakin looked from Luke to Leia in the gloomy ship. "The both of you are strong in the Force, but it is no simple thing to defeat a Sith."

Leia had never been told that she might have any ability with the Force. The idea was new to her. Han gave her a small and slightly wary side-eye.

"But, Vader, how did you get away?" Luke persisted.

"I think we should talk about that."

A short time later they all sat around the game table. Chewbacca was monitoring the controls with the help of C-3PO. R2-D2 fiddled with the bypass ensuring that it was as stable as possible. Anakin was perplexed by the droids, they looked just like his droids, and the protocol droid even went by the same number, but it acted as though it didn't recognize him, and the R2 unit only gave him a cheerful whistle before getting to work on the ship. So they obviously weren't his droids, besides that, how would they even get out here, to wherever here was, and get involved in a rebellion when only yesterday they were with Padmé. He pushed the droids out of his mind and focused on the more pressing question: Who was that Sith?

"That dark warrior who attacked us as we retreated, who was he?" Anakin could still feel the chill of the Sith's grip.

Luke thought back to when he had first seen Vader. "His name is Darth Vader. He's the leader of the Imperial military."

"What Empire?" was Anakin's next question. It was impossible that an empire just displaced the Republic, seemingly overnight.

Leia looked at him hard, as if trying to understand why he seemed so dumb. "What do you mean 'What Empire'? This is the Empire, in control of the entire galaxy. It has been for the last twenty-four years."

Anakin stared at her. "That's not possible." He looked from Leia to Han to Luke. "That would mean there's been an Empire ruling the galaxy since before I was born, and I can tell you that is not true. I was at the Senate building on Coruscant just a week ago. The Republic was functioning just fine, well as good as it ever does, then."

"This guy is crazy," said Han, "he thinks he's living in the past.

Anakin looked nonplussed. "I'm not crazy. My name is Anakin Skywalker. I am a Jedi Knight. I serve the Republic and am currently serving as a General in the Clone Wars. Doesn't any of this sound familiar?"

Leia felt as though she were looking at a faraway place. "Yes," she said distantly, "from history lessons."

"Well, that stuff wasn't _that_ long ago." Han glanced over at Leia, but she was fixated on Anakin.

Luke reached out and touched Anakin's arm. The mention of Anakin's name woke a strange sensation deep inside him. "I don't think you're lying, or crazy. Something strange is going on here and I don't think it's an accident that we met just after I had a vision from Obi-Wan telling me to look for a Jedi master to train me."

"Obi-Wan?" Anakin wasn't sure he'd heard that right. "Obi-Wan gave you a vision?" Just saying those words sounded absurd.

"Great." Han rolled his eyes. More magic powers stuff. Because his life wasn't complicated enough.

"I saw his ghost on Hoth, during the storm. I know I didn't imagine it. He told me to go to the Degobah system and find Yoda."

Anakin's blood ran cold as he repeated only two words, "His ghost."

"You knew him?" said Luke.

"Obi-Wan trained me to be a Jedi, and now you're saying he's dead? When? How? I would have known." Anakin's mind was racing. Obi-Wan couldn't be dead, he would have sensed it, dreamed it. He would know somehow.

Leia leaned forward, her intuition was hinting at something. "Vader killed Obi-Wan, years ago. Obi-Wan was protecting us so we could escape from the Empire."

"In the end," Luke added, eyes downcast, "he just stood there and let his former student cut him down."

Anakin sat back. All of this was absurd. It couldn't be real. Something in the Force, however, told him otherwise. "That's impossible." Not only did none of this make sense, but if Obi-Wan were cut down by his former student, that could only be one person. And that really was absurd. Straightening up, Anakin closed his eyes and reached out with the Force. He reached out for Obi-Wan, but he couldn't sense him. The Dark Side permeated everywhere, the only presence of the Light Side that he could feel came from the young man and woman at the table. Anakin's eyes snapped open. "Start at the beginning and tell me everything."


	6. NOW IS THE TIME

"I need to meditate." Anakin rose from the table after they had finished summarizing the last two and a half decades. Han, Luke and Leia watched him go.

"You guys don't really think he's been magically transported from the past, do you?" Han's voice was full of skepticism.

Luke and Leia exchanged glances. "I know it sounds crazy," Luke started.

"I think we have to believe him," Leia finished. They both had a strange feeling stirring within them that their destinies were about to be changed forever. Something was about to happen, because of Anakin, that would transcend the Rebellion and transform everything they knew. It was almost frightening to think about.

Anakin found the quietest, darkest place on the ship. He needed some time to process what he'd heard and to ask the Force for guidance in what he should do next. If he really was out of his time, and it seemed like that was the case, then there was only one possibility as to the identity of the Sith he had faced earlier. Just thinking about it filled him with a mixture of dread and disgust. What had happened to drive him into the darkness like that?

Sitting on the floor of the room he inhaled. He forced himself to relax, he was tense and on edge. He felt lost and confused, nothing was making sense, yet it was all too clear. Once Luke had told him about Vader he had known it. Everything he feared had happened. He thought of his mother and how much he'd been afraid he'd never see her again, how he didn't make it in time. He exhaled, that was over he couldn't do anything about that now. Now, he was out of his time, he was in the future, he had to live now.

As he meditated he let the Force flow through him. He inhaled and felt the tugging of a memory, or dream, long forgotten. Pain, fury, an echo of Obi-Wan yelling in despair, Padmé weeping. He felt overwhelmed by it, like it would destroy him. He exhaled struggling to surrender it to the Force. That premonition was in the past. He had to live in the now. Now, Obi-Wan was dead, Palpatine an unspeakable evil, the Jedi hunted down and destroyed. By him.

He inhaled, feeling himself drawn deeper into the Force. Padmé came into his thoughts then faded away. In this future he couldn't sense her anywhere. She was gone too, then. Luke and Leia surfaced in his mind. They weren't _just_ a boy and a girl he had happened to come across when he had found himself here, there was more. He exhaled. They were here as the last evidence of the goodness in him and the love he and Padmé shared. It was no accident they had met.

Anakin inhaled again. Now he had to act. He had to undo the damage he had damned the galaxy too all those years ago when he had let the Dark Side take hold of him. He had been given a second chance and he was not going to let it slip away. He now knew what he had to do. Exhaling one last time he released those last attachments. Now he had nothing to lose.

Rising, he rejoined the others in the small lounge. "I'm going to destroy Vader." Anakin's announcement took the room off guard. "It's what I'm here for. This is my purpose."

"What makes you think you can kill him?" Han said.

"Because I am him." Everyone got to their feet, unsure of what to do. Anakin continued, "I will be Vader in my future. Somehow, along the way I lost my path and betrayed my training for power, but I've been given a second chance to make it right."

Nobody was sure of what to say. Leia could in no way see any resemblance between the man standing before her and the monster she knew to be Vader, but Anakin was telling the truth. She could feel it.

Luke stepped forward. "I'll help you, I know it's what I'm meant to do. I am a Jedi, like my father."

Luke's statement hung in the air. Suddenly it had a lot more meaning than before. Anakin didn't just have the same name as his father, Luke realized, Anakin was his father sometime in the not-too-distant past.

Leia seemed to have realized this too. "If you are Anakin Skywalker from the time of the Clone Wars . . ."

"Yes," Anakin said simply. "Luke and you are both my children. Padmé, your mother, and Obi-Wan must have separated you to keep Vader from finding you. I didn't realize it at first, but now I'm sure. The Force brought me into your lives for a reason."

Everyone let that sink in for a long moment. Luke and Leia exchanged an uneasy glance. They had always shared a strong connection, something inexplicable that joined them in ways even they couldn't fathom. Now, Anakin finally put into words a truth they had known intuitively all along.

"But, that means Vader-" Leia swallowed and didn't finish her thought. All at once, every bitter memory associated with Vader washed over her. She took in a deep breath. Han put a hand on her shoulder applying a comforting pressure, she reached up and touched it, giving him an appreciative glance.

Anakin looked at the floor, he could see that she had been hurt by Vader, everyone here had. He felt ashamed, exhaling, he released that too. Shame was only pride, an attachment to self.

"I'm sorry for everything that's happened because of me, I swear that I'm going to make it right." Anakin spoke in such a way that no one doubted him.

"We're going to help you." Luke was resolute. "The Force must have brought you here, to us, so that we can stand by you, together, as family."

Anakin looked from Luke to Leia, feeling a thousand years older in an instant. "You have already helped me in ways you don't understand. I have to do this alone. This is my responsibility."

Luke, Leia and Anakin were silent for the rest of the trip. Leia kept going over everything in her mind, searching for a way that it wasn't true that Vader was her father. But it was. She didn't need the facts laid out before her. Deep down she just . . . knew.

Luke kept going over everything Obi-Wan had said to him. No matter which way he looked at it, Obi-Wan had lied. Why hadn't he just told the truth? Was it really better for him to think of Vader as a distant monster than as his father? What was Obi-Wan playing at?

Anakin reflected on everything he had learned. How could he turn into that dark spectre he had seen on Hoth? How could he destroy everything he had loved? Obi-Wan had warned him repeatedly on the dangers of attachment. From here he could now see with clarity how dangerous they were. His attachments and his pride had caused him to destroy those he loved, and to destroy all that he was supposedly attached too. His attachments had become his prison and made him into a monster.

And yet, even in all that, Padmé and Obi-Wan had found a way to save whatever small part of him that was still good. They had kept his children safe from harm, and now they were saving the galaxy from him one battle at a time. Anakin felt a spark of true pride in his children, and a deep affection for Obi-Wan and Padmé who had certainly suffered much and had never given in. He may have a been a lost cause, but the cause of peace and justice was still protected by its greatest champions.

Han and Chewie sat in the cockpit, the droids were powered down to conserve their energy until the arrived at Cloud City. Han fiddled with some small parts that had come from somewhere in the _Falcon_. He'd figure out where they went later. "Do you really think it's possible?" Chewie growled an affirmative. Han didn't really know what else he expected, Chewie was always more willing to believe in hocus pocus than he was. "But how, I mean, it's way more likely that he's kooky than that he fell through a wormhole or caught a blast of Force magic, it's all pretty nuts."

Chewie responded with a rumbling roar. Han grimaced. "You can say that again."


	7. SKYFALL

_Mellinium Falcon_ dropped out of hyperspace in view of the planet Bespin. The ship was greeted by an escort that guided them to a particular landing platform on Cloud City. Luke, Leia and Anakin assembled in the cockpit to get a look at their temporary respite. The clouds swirled around the city in magnificent pinkish mounds. The place looked entirely innocuous.

"Someone you know runs a place like that?" Leia asked skeptically.

"Sure," said Han, "Lando's a classy guy, kinda."

After docking, the group trooped off the ship and onto the berth where they were greeted by a man wearing a fantastic cape. Chewie growled something to Han as Han approached their caped host. "I'm sure he's forgotten about that," said Han.

"You gotta lot of nerve showing up here." Lando didn't sound happy.

Han paused for a second, not sure what to do, then the tension was broken as Lando broke into a smile every bit as fantastic as his cape and gave Han a hug. Leia rolled her eyes at the theatrics. Han and his friends were certainly something.

Lando stepped back. "I'm assuming you'd like a place to clean up a bit before dinner?"

"Yeah, and the _Falcon_ is gonna need some new parts, the hyperdrive hasn't worked since," Han gave Chewie a sidelong glare, "someone tried to modify it recently."

"I'll have my men get right on it." Lando gave another fantastic smile. He turned to Leia "And who might I have the distinct pleasure of addressing?"

"Leia." She offered her hand. Lando took it and kissed the back in the most romantic way a person could manage. Leia tried hard not to roll her eyes again.

C-3PO and Artoo had been left aboard the ship to help with the hyperdrive repairs, so the suite Lando led them too felt particularly quiet. Anakin didn't quite know how he felt about the droids. Artoo seemed to remember him, but C-3PO, his own creation, didn't know him at all. Somewhere along the way it'd had it's memory wiped, and now Anakin was just another person to serve, just like all the rest.

The lavish suite of rooms Lando had taken them too had a spectacular view of the city and the clouds. Han paced restlessly, he didn't trust Lando and he was sure something was up, he just didn't know what. Anakin stood at the window, hands clasped behind his back, focusing on the shifting shapes of the clouds. Leia was trying to reorganize her thoughts; what she needed now was time to think, Luke and Anakin and her were all tangled together in her mind and she needed to sort it out. Luke fiddled with his lightsaber hilt, he felt confused and off balance. Everything in his entire world had turned upside down, again.

Lando personally fetched them when dinner time came. As the others made to follow him, Anakin stood still. "Aren't you coming?"

"No. I need to meditate." Anakin didn't even turn to look at his host.

"Well, you'll be missing a great meal." Lando pressed him.

"Go on without me."

Leia felt a little uneasy. "He may come along later, he's had a long day."

"Okay." Lando conceded. "He doesn't know what he's missing. I have some of the best chefs in the galaxy right here."

Lando took them though the city complex to the dining room. Along the way he pointed out various attraction points. As they came to the dining room Lando put his hand on the release, catching Han's eye. "And I just want you to know, it's not personal." Pressing the button the door slid open to reveal a long table where, at it's head, stood Darth Vader.

Han yanked his blaster from his holster and shot at the Sith twice. Vader deflected the blasts with a raised hand, then pulled the blaster from Han's hand, leaving him dumbstruck at what had just happened. Stormtroopers scurried to surround them, blasters bristling.

Vader ignited his lightsaber, it's red blade shining against his black raiment. "Just as I have foreseen."

"I'm ready," Luke said as he released his own lightsaber from his belt and ignited the blue blade.

Stormtroopers raised their blasters, aiming at Luke. Vader turned to his troop commander. "Stand down. This is between me and the young one."

"Luke, no." Leia cried out, to no avail.

Vader and Luke moved toward each other, circling as they prepared for the first strike. Luke attacked first, swinging his blade as hard as he could against the Dark Lord. Vader smote down Luke's attack and struck against him before he could fully recover. Luke parried, moving backward out of the dining room and into the hallway under relentless assault from the Sith.

Vader knew the young man was weak and overconfident. It would not take long to overpower him. He maneuvered Luke down the hallway, keeping the fledgling Jedi fully occupied in staying alive. "Obi-Wan taught you well, you have grown strong in the Force."

As Vader advanced, Luke struggled to stay on his feet, all his focus was on keeping that red blade at bay. Vader manipulated Luke's inexperience, gaining the advantage despite Luke's youthful strength. Luke gritted his teeth as he tried not to let Vader force him into a corner. "You haven't seen anything yet." Luke's words were filled with more confidence than he felt.

"Strong words from someone so young. Perhaps you would like to prove yourself." Vader redoubled his attack. Back, back, and back again Luke went. Vader didn't relent, didn't let up. Luke was beginning to fear that he wouldn't make it out of the confrontation. Adrenaline flooded every part of him as he gave way under the merciless assault.

Vader sensed Luke's strength was waning. "Use your fear, it will only make you stronger, let the Dark Side flow through you. Join me, and we can rule the galaxy."

"I'll never join you." Luke struck out, his blue blade whirring. A move that Vader predicted with ease. Deflecting Luke's blade, Vader seized Luke's wrist twisting it while wrenching it back forcefully. Luke yelled in pain as his arm snapped. The lightsaber fell from his hand, clattering to the floor. Vader threw Luke to the ground where he laid in a heap, breathing hard. Standing over him, Vader pointed his red blade at Luke's chest.

"Now you are mine. You have no choice but to join me, young Skywalker. You will be my apprentice."

"No."

Anakin stood in the hallway, lightsaber humming. Slowly Vader turned to face him. His dark energy rolled through the corridor. Anakin shivered at the intensity of it's cold. The sound of the mechanical breathing made his skin crawl.

"This ends here!" Anakin pointed his lightsaber at the Sith.

"Tell me who you are," Vader demanded.

"I think you know." Anakin's voice was ice. "This is where I put an end to my own darkness."

Vader readied himself with a fighting stance. "You are weak, Jedi."

"No." Anakin brought up his own blade. "You are." With that he rushed at the Dark Lord.

The blue and red blades met with an indescribable energy. The Force roiled around the two warriors. Their blades crashed and flashed as they clashed together. They parried each other with equal skill.

Luke rose shakily, his arm was certainly broken. He had almost no sensation in his hand, and numbness crawled up and down his arm in waves. The combatants started moving down the hall. Luke watched, amazed at the two men as they met such devastating blows on one another, and deflected said blows with apparent ease. Scooping up his lightsaber, Luke followed them.

Anakin struggled against the Sith. It seemed that the Dark Side had given Vader some advantage, and Anakin fought to keep up. He had never been in such close proximity to someone so purely powerful in the Force before. Their struggle brought them to a piece of hallway in front of a large circular window. Vader brought his hand up to Force push Anakin, Anakin pushed back bringing them to a stalemate. Vader kicked out at Anakin, sending him staggering backwards.

"You will always be weak until you accept the power of the Dark Side." Vader's breathing was coming heavier than before, but his voice still held the mechanical menace that gave Anakin shivers.

Anakin regained his balance, sweat stinging at his eyes. "You may think you have power, but you are only a slave."

Luke caught up to the Jedi and Sith in the hallway, Vader's back was to the wall and Anakin's was to the window. Luke's right arm was too injured for him to join Anakin and fight Vader. Anakin looked away from Vader and caught Luke's eye. For a millisecond they connected, and Luke just knew what to do. Bringing back his left arm he flung his lightsaber as hard as he could towards Anakin.

Anakin reached up and caught the saber, it flashed to life just as Vader used the Force to attack Anakin with a nearby crate. Anakin sliced through the crate just as another one barreled towards him. He deflected that one as well, but Vader kept up the assault, his power seemingly inexhaustible. Anakin knew he couldn't keep this up, eventually one of those missiles would catch him and that would be enough of an opening for Vader to finish him permanently. Caught between a rock and a hard place, Anakin decided on a third way.

Jumping backwards towards the window Anakin sliced at the glass with his two lightsabers smashing an opening for himself with the Force. Anakin disappeared through the window as air was rapidly sucked out of the building while the pressure equalized.

Vader had not expected such a move, and had barely had time to brace himself before the violent depressurization. Luke was slammed into a wall where he tried to hang on with his good arm. When he felt the pressure finally settle he peeked out around his corner. Vader was no longer in the hallway.

From the other end of the hallway Leia came sprinting into view, wielding what appeared to be a stormtrooper blaster. "Luke!" she called out when she saw him. Running to him she threw her arms around him relieved to see him alive. Luke groaned as her weight fell on his injured arm. "Where's Vader?" she asked.

"They went out the window. Anakin and Vader are still fighting."

Moving to look out the window, Luke and Leia beheld Anakin and Vader standing on a precarious catwalk as the gusting wind at the center of Cloud City pushed them relentlessly. Their blades carved a deadly pattern through the air causing damage to the railings and floor of the walkway. Sparks flew as they grappled with each other, Luke and Leia could feel the energy exuded by the combatants. For a short, surreal moment, Luke and Leia realized that their father was out there, fighting for his life. Even as they looked on, Vader and Anakin broke away from each other. The wind pulled at them, sending Vader's cloak billowing like a dark cloud.

"You have nowhere else to run, now surrender to your fate." Vader was emphatic as he gestured at Anakin with his red blade.

Anakin stood his ground, his twin lightsabers humming. "I don't need to run anymore. I spent so much of my life afraid, running, hating, fighting. No more. This is where you end. I'm not a slave anymore. My name is Anakin Skywalker and I am the Chosen One."

Vader attacked again swinging at Anakin, Anakin blocked with one blade and drove the other into Vader's body. Vader's gasp was audible, even in the wind. He fell onto Anakin, Anakin stumbled back against the battered remains of the railing, overbalancing. The both of them tumbled over the rail and out of sight.


	8. LEGACY

Luke and Leia were stunned by what they had just witnessed. They were still standing at the window minutes later when Han, Chewie and Lando came running down the hall looking for them. Han glanced between Leia and the window. "What's going on, where's Vader?"

"He's gone, they're both gone." Leia almost couldn't believe it. Vader, gone. Anakin, gone.

"Where, where'd he go?" Lando looked around them to look out the window as well.

"He fell," said Luke. "Anakin too."

"Anakin? I thought he was in the room," said Lando. Luke glanced at Lando a little confused by his presence.

"Well," said Han with a grimace, "I hate to break it to you, but there's still a bunch of stormtroopers here. We gotta get going before they find us." Han gestured to Lando answering Luke's unasked question, "He's with us now."

"I've called an evacuation of the city," said Lando, "we don't have long before Imperial reinforcements arrive." Chewbacca growled in agreement.

Breaking out of their shock, Luke and Leia left the window and the five of them raced through the hallways between them and the docking bay. The halls were flooded with others streaming towards the ships. People were carrying all they could take in one trip as they evacuated the city in the clouds.

Fighting through the confusion, they made their way back to _Millennium Falcon_. They almost tripped over C-3PO upon entering. "Wonderful news, the hyperdrive has been fixed, we can now safely travel back to the others."

"Great," Han barked as he slid into the pilot's seat. "Let's get moving." The _Falcon_ revved up and Han took them away from the city at top speeds.

* * *

Days later at the Rebel rendezvous the story of Cloud City was starting to spread across the galaxy. Vader hadn't been seen since that day, nor Anakin. The place had been picked over by stormtroopers, but no clue had been found as to the whereabouts of either. Luke knew they were both gone. Since that day he hadn't felt either in the Force. Vader's presence no longer menaced the edges of his consciousness. Anakin's brief but powerful presence no longer magnetized the Force.

Leia found Luke as he was sitting in his X-Wing. She climbed the ladder and leaned over the side of the cockpit. "Everything okay?"

"I guess... I don't know." Luke sighed. "Vader's gone, but that's not the end, is it? There's still the Empire, we're still the Rebellion. It feels as if nothing has really changed."

Leia put her hand on Luke's arm. "But it has, the Empire is weaker now than it has ever been before. The Force brought Anakin to us because he had to be the one to conquer Vader. Neither you or I could have ever been capable of that. Now it's our turn to finish what he started."

"I suppose," Luke gave Leia a wan smile, "you know, I haven't thought much about relying on family over the last few years, I thought I didn't have any left."

"Neither did I," Leia said, "I thought the Empire had taken them all from me, but here we are."

Luke was silent for a moment, he contemplated the control panel of his X-Wing which he knew so well. Glancing up at Leia he asked, "Do you remember our mother?"

Leia gazed across the hangar trying to recall what she knew. "I think so," she said, "it almost feels like I'm remembering a dream. She was gentle and kind, and very sad." Looking back at Luke she said, "I wish we would have had more time with Anakin."

"Me too," said Luke. "Now what?"

"We have to keep fighting. We can't stop until the Empire is overthrown." Leia gave her brother a determined look. "I know it was what we were already doing, but Anakin opened up a way for us to actually win. The Alliance has a shot now, and you can learn more about the ways of the Force. You are destined to become a great Jedi, like our father."

Luke thought back over the tumultuous last few days. "I'm glad we finally know the truth." He paused and thought for a moment more. "You know, when I saw Ben in the snowstorm talking about a Jedi master, I thought he meant Anakin. But he wasn't, Anakin was never supposed to train me, he came to destroy Vader. There's still a Jedi master out there, waiting to train me."

"Another Jedi? How will you find him?" Leia said.

Luke thought hard, his brow furrowed as he recalled the conversation in the snow. "Dagobah. He's on Dagobah."

"You should go to him, the galaxy needs you more now than ever. As a Jedi you'll be able to free us from the Empire once and for all." New hope blazed in Leia as she considered the possibilities.

"It won't just be me this time, our father was a great Jedi and that lives on in both of us." He put his hand on top of Leia's and looked up into her eyes. "We should go, together."

The End.


End file.
